preview

Leadership : Oprah Winfrey 's Work

Satisfactory Essays

Colleen Gribble
Linfield College
Leadership Exam 3
Leader: Oprah Winfrey
May 12, 2017 Which theory of leadership is most applicable to the approach displayed in Oprah Winfrey’s work?

Inspirational leaders come from the worlds of business, politics and even entertainment. Certainly, it seems these are the ones everyone looks up to and they are the ones leading us bravely into the future. Coming from very humble beginnings, Oprah Winfrey uses her story to inspire others to achieve their goals. From the readings in Gill, Transformational Leadership style requires one to look past self-interest for the common good, have strong values liberty, justice, equality additionally they empower followers to become self-thinkers, …show more content…

Winfrey’s awareness of her own vision has led her to achieve grand goals, while her listening skills and empathy have enabled her to inspire others (centerforworklife). Oprah’s personality and how she treats people as equals make people love her, trust her with their most inner secrets, and want to share their successes with her (Goudreau, 2010).

Clearly, Oprah has looked past self-interest for the common good and stayed true to her vision and values of liberty, justice, equality (Gill, 2011). Oprah’s emotional intelligence and self-awareness have over and over put her in touch with others feelings. Leading by example, always focused on being the best she can be, Oprah has become a positive role model for women (centerforworklife). An inspirational quote that is my favorite is “The way I see it, every year can be a brand new journey” (Oprah, 2014).

How has Oprah Winfrey displayed or described her values?

Oprah, queen of media, is like a force of nature and has built a global audience and a $2.7 billion net worth quote (Goudreau, 2010). But she did not get there by chance, rising from poverty to become one of the world’s most influential role models for young women, while always staying true to her vision and values. “I wanted to be a teacher. And to be known for inspiring my students to be more than they thought they could be” (Oprah, 2009). Live Your Best

Get Access